Simply homemade Chinese style black bean sauce – made from fermented black beans (sometimes known as salted black beans).
The beans only need to be soaked briefly for 30-60 minutes, then they can be quickly made into a rich stir-fry umami sauce.
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I love making pan sauces as they’re usually so easy—it takes little more than a squirt of different ingredients from multiple bottles, plus some garlic and ginger.
However, black bean sauce has always intrigued me as it contains something I had never used before. Black beans, of course.
Now we’re not talking canned or dried black beans here. Black bean sauce calls for fermented black beans, also called douchi. These are black soybeans that have been fermented and salted.
I have to admit that I really didn’t want to bother fermenting black beans (over 6 months) myself, but luckily you can buy them in packets, already fermented!
📋 Ingredients?
Most black bean sauce ingredients can be found at virtually any medium-sized grocery store. Only the beans may be a bit more difficult to find.
You should be able to pick them up at any Asian supermarket, or if you don’t have one nearby Amazon sells them too.
We just need 4 tablespoons fermented black beans to make a cup of black bean sauce (which should serve about 4 people), ie I would recommend getting the smaller packunless you want to make LOTS of black bean sauce.
- The red package (<--affiliate link) below is a 100g pack. I use about a third of this pack to make a jar of black bean sauce.
- The white pack (<--affiliate link) is 500g! I bought a large pack because I knew I would be doing a lot of testing.
Luckily they last forever. An opened pack should be kept in a sealed container in the refrigerator. They could easily last a year there.
📺 Check out how to make it
For the full recipe with detailed steps, see the recipe card at the end of this post.
- First we will Soak the fermented black beans in cold water for about an hour. After this time, drain and rinse the beans. The beans are very salty, so rinse well.
- Crush the beans Stir up a little with the back of a fork. Leave about a quarter of the beans whole, the rest can be mashed into a lumpy paste.
- Fry the garlic and ginger in oil with the black beans. Then add rice wine, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, pepper and broth.
- Simmer together for about 5 minutes. Thicken the sauce with some cornstarch, then turn off the heat and it’s ready to use.
👩🍳PRO TIP The gravy will be a little salty, but once you’ve seared it with the meat and veggies, it’ll be tasty perfectly balanced. You can use a reduced-sodium broth if you’re concerned it may be too salty for your liking.
🍽️ how to use it
- Fried with chicken, tofu or vegetables
- Seared with beef and vegetables for a delicious flavor Beef in black bean sauce ⬇️
If you don’t want to use the sauce right away, you can let it cool and then store it in a sealed container/jar in the fridge for two weeks.
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Black bean sauce recipe
Easy Homemade Chinese Style Black Bean Sauce – made with fermented black beans.
INSTRUCTIONS
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Start by soaking the fermented black beans. Place in a bowl and cover with cold water. Leave to soak for an hour, then rinse and drain.
4 tablespoons fermented black beans
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Once drained, mash the black beans lightly with the back of a fork. I like to puree about three quarters and leave the rest whole.
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Place the sesame seeds and canola oil in a small saucepan. Heat on medium heat.
1 tablespoon sesame oil, 1 tablespoon canola oil
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Add the garlic, ginger, and black beans and fry, stirring frequently, until fragrant, 1 minute.
3 minced garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon chopped ginger
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Add rice wine, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, pepper and broth.
2 tablespoons Shaoxing Chinese rice wine, 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce, 1 tsp rice vinegar, 2 teaspoons granulated or powdered sugar, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, 180 ml ¾ cup chicken or vegetable stock
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Stir, bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes until liquid has reduced slightly.
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Stir in the cornmeal to thicken the sauce, then turn off the heat.
cornmeal
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Use immediately or allow to cool, cover and refrigerate for up to two weeks.
✎ Notes
Nutritional information is a guide per serving, based on this recipe it makes 4 servings.
Nourishment
Calories: 136kcalCarbohydrates: 8thGProtein: 6GFat: 9GSaturated Fatty Acids: 1GPolyunsaturated fat: 4GMonounsaturated fatty acids: 2GCholesterol: 0.1mgSodium: 744mgPotassium: 37mgFiber: 2GSugar: 3GVitamin A: 2IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 12mgIron: 0.5mg
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